At SAP Globalization Service’s Language Services Department, we have been developing a common learning program with the University of Limerick in Ireland. The curriculum is based on the MSc in Multilingual Computing and Localisation offered by the university’s Localisation Research Centre at the Department of Computer Science and Information Systems. It has been adapted to meet our employees’ daily localization engineering needs, and industry/research experts are teaching their areas of expertise over a period of seven months (April – December 2016). Within this timeframe, our employees are able to complete five modules:

Localization Strategies and Processes

Advanced Language Technology

Translation Technology

Standards

Internationalization

The university’s coordinators have been extremely helpful in designing the program to meet our industry needs. Following a pilot in 2015, we collected feedback from the pilot participants, and completely reworked the contents and structure to satisfy the employees’ learning requirements.The learning content is delivered online, using an online platform, and comprehensive study material as well as webinars are also available. To complete the learning experience, there are projects and exercises that can be solved by following instructions delivered by an expert.

The program has been rolled out globally: SAP employees from North America, South East Asia, the Middle East and Europe participate in their respective time zones.

We are glad to collaborate with the University of Limerick as an academic partner with strong international linkages, addressing our industry needs and focusing on a rich student experience.